2008 PROCEEDINGS - Public Relations Society of America

If you’re going to work with [company], you’re going to get involved in the
community, so that means you’re going to spend some money on a local charity.
And then we can put them up for awards. If they are looking for the kind of face
that they want to put out in the community, they are going to know what we
expect. We can’t obviously force them, but we say, “If you want a good
opportunity, you’ve got [local event], you’ve got 30,000 people and you should
put $10,000 toward that.” Or, “This is a good place to spend money at this local
school. It’s only $500, but you’re going to get a lot of good will from it.”
Another practitioner exposed a rift in ethical intent and action when she decided to fully
report on her actions not because of her duty to remain honest, but due to a fear of being caught
by the client. She stated,
We have to document all of our outreach. It's repetitive work because you have to
do the pitch, then you have to email it to your boss, and we also have an online
database where we keep all our outreach and logged calls. There are days where I
don’t want to do it, but we have to because I know our client could ask for a list of
what we did.
Results of the second research question reveal a lack of experience with and thorough
understanding of deontological public relations decision making models.
Discussion
Findings suggest that public relations practitioners make ethical decisions by respecting
others, communicating honestly, and relying on the assistance of industry professionals. Results
also reveal that professionals evaluate deontological decision making models as difficult to
uphold due to the often situational, rushed and constrained nature of their work. In some cases,
due to lack of experience or client demands, practitioners not only failed to utilize a
deontological decision making procedure, but also failed to rely upon any form of ethical
thinking.
The first research question addressed how public relations professionals make ethical
decisions. All participants mentioned that their decisions consider coworkers and journalists, as
well as utilize honest communication and business practices. Interestingly, themes reflected two
tenets of the deontological theory of ethical issues management and public relations:
maintenance of others’ dignity and respect and moral duty. These two concepts serve as core
steps within the deontological models explored in the second research question. A third theme,
practitioners’ use of decision making protocol and personal guidance, reflects a preference for
making decisions based on an organizational philosophy, troubleshooting framework, or the
wisdom of more experienced professionals. This suggests that practitioners, especially those with
less experience or technical roles, may benefit from a deontological model of public relations
ethics to further assist them during the decision making process.
The second research question addressed how public relations practitioners make meaning
of deontological models of public relations. Although respondents identified with several
deontological concepts and used them to counsel clients, some practitioners in agency
environments argued that step-by-step deontological models do not accurately reflect their
current method of ethical decision making. Perhaps a circular model or non-ordered checklist of
deontological ethical decision making could better apply to these current professionals’ needs.
Furthermore, differences in practitioner actions and the motivations behind those actions reveal a
discord between the public relations profession and pure, duty-based ethical decision making.
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